The Colombian Civil Air Patrol: Saving Lives in Times of Crisis

WhereNext produced this video for His Majesty the King of Spain. It was presented at the 7th King of Spain Human Rights Award, which was awarded to the Patrulla Aérea Civil Colombiana (PAC) in 2017.

Our Colombian Production Company and the Colombian Civil Air Patrol

The Patrulla Aerea Civil Colombiana (Colombian Civil Air Patrol or PAC) was founded in 1966 by private pilots. These pilots were motivated simply by the desire to help to provide medical, surgical, humanitarian, and emergency medical care to Colombian towns that are inaccessible by road. Colombia's geography is complex: vast swathes of the east and south of the country are impenetrable rainforests, and much of the Pacific coastal region is equally cut-off from the rest of the country. Many of these remote regions were disproportionately impacted by conflict and the drug trade. The scars from that tumultuous period of political instability continue to leave many isolated communities without basic medical care. The PAC brings the doctors, medical supplies, and services that these people need and deserve.

Founded more than half a century ago, the PAC now enlists 71 private pilots and over 450 volunteer health professionals and is the most essential non-profit healthcare organization in Colombia. They typically undertake 12 missions per year, performing approximately 15,000 medical consultations and more than 7,000 medical treatments. They fly over 100,000 miles annually. That's four-and-a-half times around the globe! In the last decade alone, the PAC has facilitated the treatment of almost 100,000 citizens. Some had been waiting for surgery for up to 15 years.

Our Colombian production company worked on a series of promotional videos for the PAC in 2017. The first video we produced for them served as a personal thank you to those who donated money to buy a new mobile anesthesia machine for rapid field deployment. The second video was produced for His Majesty the King of Spain and was presented at the 7th King of Spain Human Rights Award, which was awarded to the Patrulla Aérea Civil Colombiana (PAC) in 2017.

The original series of videos were shot on location in the municipality of El Tambo in Cauca department. This region had long been a hotbed of the Colombian armed conflict. Despite El Tambo's relative proximity to the regional capital of Popayan, many of the local people filmed for the video had seldom had professional medical treatment before the visit of the PAC.

At the time of our production, El Tambo was also an active conflict zone. This made for an intense experience for our team on the ground. On the one hand, we were shooting uplifting human stories of children receiving vital medicine and life-saving surgeries. Yet, on the other hand, our videographers were outsiders in a region that, at the time, was highly suspicious of strangers. We were under strict instructions about where we could film.

Yet this experience only served to highlight the commitment and courage of the PAC volunteers, who have been venturing into conflict zones for decades, putting aside personal fears to save the lives of Colombia's most vulnerable and deprived citizens. They work tirelessly, throughout the night, for days on end, and people's lives are better because of them.

Flying COVID-19 Test Samples From Isolated Communities to Be Analyzed in Bogota

Since we have entered a global pandemic situation unlike anything most of us have experienced in our lifetimes, the PAC's work has taken on a new urgency. Previously, the focus of monthly missions was on surgeries and medical treatment, now they are focussed on flying vital Personal Protective Equipment to rural medical centers and transporting Covid-19 tests from small towns to more sophisticated medical facilities in major cities like Bogotá and Medellín. Without this work, it would be almost impossible to monitor cases of the virus in these isolated rural regions.

To help promote the PAC during these demanding times, WhereNext is proud to work pro-bono to create new videos that draw attention to the essential services that they are providing. We produced a new promotional series of videos for the PAC using our existing Cauca footage, plus user-generated videos shot in the field by the volunteer pilots and health professionals on their most recent missions. Since this organization depends almost entirely on support from private volunteers and donors and demand for their services is increasing, there's never been a more pressing need to promote the PAC, attract new volunteers, and solicit contributions.

It's a privilege for WhereNext to volunteer for an organization like the PAC during this global health crisis. For those of us who are fortunate enough to count on access to health services, the current pandemic is already frightening enough, but imagine living in regions where the nearest hospital or medical center is days away by boat or dirt road. The services being provided by volunteers working with the PAC could potentially save thousands of lives in rural Colombian communities. Our videos illuminate PAC members’ selfless sacrifices and the courageous work that they do for Colombia’s most marginalized citizens. Join us on this video journey celebrating the volunteers of Colombia’s Civil Air Patrol.

During the current global health crisis, the Colombian Civil Air Patrol’s work has taken on even more urgent importance as they fly Covid-19 test samples from isolated communities to be analyzed in Bogota. WhereNext volunteered to edit a new series of user-generated videos for them that illuminate the courageous work that they do for Colombia’s most marginalized people.

Help by Donating to the PAC

The smiling face of a Colombian child after seeing a doctor for the first time thanks to the Colombian Civil Air Patrol

If you want to work with our Colombian Production Company you can contact us here.

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